Trust and Secrets
by KoniGeorghion
Summary: Mia's mom and stepdad want to move away from New York! What will Mia do? All her friends are in NY (as well as her not-so-secret love interest). Mia's out on her own until Grandmere finds out...thats when the trouble begins.
1. Welcome Home

Disclaimer: The characters you recognize from the books are NOT mine. The ones that just happened to pop up that you've never heard of before, they're mine. Easy enough to understand? Good.

This takes place 3 years after Michael's senior year. Meaning, Mia, Lilly, and Tina just graduated from High School and are about to start college. Boris graduated a year early, so he is in college already. Michael and Boris are going to Columbia (so is Mia). Tina is going to a special fashion design academy, and Lilly is going to City College of New York (CCNY). That's about it I think.

* * *

Mia walked along the path in Central Park listening to Boris and Tina talk. Boris started mocking one of his teachers from Columbia, and Tina and Mia laughed.

"Excuse Me Sir!! P-Please do n-n-not speak to me in that r-r-rude manner Sir!!" He lisped.

Over the past 3 years, Boris had become more outspoken, less dorky, and even a little more—well, normal. He'd started wearing t-shirts and jeans like every other guy in New York, and had finally ditched the tucked in sweater. And while he was still a musical genius, he'd picked up instruments like guitar and drums instead of the violin. Mostly this change was brought on by Tina. He wanted to please her, impress her. They had been together since the end of 9th grade. They had a great relationship, they were faithful to each other, and had even started planning their future together.

Tina and Mia burst out laughing as Boris deliberately staggered around, tripping over rocks and running into benches. Tina kept on giggling as she slipped her hand into the crook of Boris' arm and leaned her head on his shoulder. Boris kissed her on top her head and started telling another story about his teachers from Columbia. Mia followed behind them, pulling her coat tightly around her and looking around the park. It was a cold day in February. Snow was on the ground and in the trees, kids ran around having snowball fights, and fires were lit with homeless people huddled around them, trying to keep out the cold. She noticed a guy running across the park and waving in her direction. She didn't recognize him at first, but then she realized who it was.

"Michael!" She yelled. She ran over to him and threw her arms around his neck. "When did you get back?" She asked, holding him out at arms length. "You look wonderful!"

"Five minutes ago. I was dropping Lilly off at her apartment when we saw you and the gang walking. So we stopped." Mia looked up and saw Lilly trudging towards them. Michael leaned over and whispered in her ear. "You look great. God, I missed you Mia." Mia was about to reply when Lilly yelled across the park.

"A little help here would be nice!"

"Lil!" She laughed and grabbed a few bags out of Lilly's hands. "I missed you so much! How was France? Tell me everything! Two months really is too long for you guys to be gone! Tina and Boris are great and all, but I thought I was going to go mad without you!" Lilly just laughed and looked over at Michael, who had a silly grin plastered onto his face.

"Thanks for waiting for me, Michael." She joked, and then turned to Mia. "It was great, but I'll tell you about it when you come over tonight okay?"

"All right." Mia said and turned around, facing Michael. She saw Boris and Tina walking over towards them. Tina still had her arm in Boris'. Mia glanced at Lilly from the corner of her eye. Lilly saw her and punched her playfully in the arm.

"Gosh, Mia, you don't think I'm still upset about that do you? I mean, it's been forever!" Mia breathed a sigh of relief. Lilly walked over to Boris and Tina. Tina giggled and Lilly hugged them both. While they were talking, Michael grabbed Mia's hand.

"Hey." He gave Mia a look that made her heart melt. "Is this all the welcome I get? A hug and an 'I missed you'?"

"Michael, they'll turn around and see us any minute." Mia hissed, looking back over her shoulder at Lilly, Tina, and Boris.

"You think I care?" He growled and buried his face in her neck. She kissed his cheek.

"I did miss you, you know." She whispered, and then slapped his hand away when she noticed Lilly staring at them. She started to laugh when Lilly smiled and winked. Lilly loudly announced that she needed help unloading and carrying things up to her apartment, so Mia grabbed Michael's hand and the group walked back over to his car. They all grabbed a suitcase or a box and headed up to Lilly's place. When everything was inside, Lilly fixed everyone Cokes and they sat around while Lilly and Michael told them about France. They ordered Chinese food in from Wu Liang Ye and watched movies that Lilly had borrowed from a neighbor and forgotten to return. Finally at 10:30, Lilly said she was tired and Boris and Tina set off down the street, towards Tina's house. Lilly slammed the door behind them and turned around and made a face.

"What a mess!" She laughed, looking around the living room. Photographs of France sat on the floor where people had left them, boxes of leftover Chinese food sat on tables and chairs, and pillows where thrown all over the place. Lilly did the dishes while Michael and Mia cleaned up the living room. While Michael was taking the trash out to the dumpster, Lilly cornered Mia.

"What's going on with you and Michael?" She asked. Mia just shrugged and tried not to smile. Lilly playfully punched her in the ribs and would have badgered her more when they heard the front door slam. Mia slipped away from Lilly, and the girls (and Michael) finished cleaning up with out anymore questions asked. When the work was done, Mia and Michael left as well, and after she was sure that Mia and Michael were gone, Lilly slumped against the door and sighed.

"I need a boyfriend SO bad." She mumbled as she turned off the lights and went to bed.


	2. Sneaking Around

Michael opened the passenger door for Mia and helped her into his car. Then he ran around to the driver's side and hopped in. He grinned over at Mia.

"I missed you Mia." He said, leaning over to kiss her.

"I missed you too Michael." She turned her head away from him.

"Is something wrong?" He asked, sitting up again.

"No! It's just—you know we're sitting in front of Lilly's apartment and she's staring right at us—you know?" She blushed and gave his hand a quick squeeze. Michael waved at Lilly and she smiled and waved back, then closed the curtains. He started the car and they drove down the road to the Mia's apartment.

"How about now?" He asked, and before she could answer, he planted a kiss on her lips. He reached up and started to unbutton her coat but she pulled away and shook her head.

"You have really bad timing." She smiled and got out of his car. Groaning, he jumped out from the other side and came around to the front of the car.

"I can't help it. I haven't seen you for two months, and I can't even touch you when I come home!" He said, putting his arm around her waist.

"Are you very mad?" She asked, letting her arm slip lower on his back so that it was almost on his butt.

"Never." He grinned and chased her up the stairs. They stopped in front of the door and Michael put his arms around her.

"G'Night Thermopolis." He whispered and kissed her softly. Mia blushed again, and slipped her arms around his waist. Michael backed her up against the wall and pinned her there. He growled and started kissing her neck. All of a sudden, the door to the apartment swung open and Mr. G stood there, looking shocked and staring at Michael and Mia. Without realizing it, Mia had hit the doorbell. Michael jerked back and blushed just as deeply as Mia. He mumbled a "Hello" and "Goodbye" to Mr. G gave Mia a quick wink and practically sprinted towards the elevator. When the elevator doors closed, Mr. G stepped out of the doorway and let Mia in.

"Mia, since when are you and Michael—"He started to ask, but Mia interrupted him.

"Don't ask me any questions, and I won't be forced to tell you any lies." She said, throwing her scarf and coat on a chair by the door and walking into her room, slamming the door behind her. She threw herself on her bed and reached under it.She extracted a journal, an envelope, and a pen from under her mattress. She opened the journal, placed the pen over it, and started to write. Within five minutes, she dropped her pen and picked up the envelope. She undid the clasp and pictures, newspaper clippings, and letters fell out of it. She looked through them all with a soft smile on her face. She stopped to read a letter Michael had written to her last year. As she read, she played with the snowflake charm dangling at her throat. Michael had given it to her as a birthday present three years ago, and she'd worn it ever since.

_Mia, _

_I don't know why I'm writing this, or even if you want to hear it. I know we said that we'd stop seeing each other because of the stress it was putting on you and your grandmother, and me and---well, everyone. But I can't stand this anymore. It's torture having to go over to Lil's apartment with the gang and not being able to look at you. Everytime a sneak a glance in your direction, you're laughing and smiling, but you don't look happy. I wanted to know if you're unhappy for the same reason I am. I miss you Mia, I can't stand knowing that you're sitting next to me, but I can't put my arms around you. I miss us sneaking off an hour earlier than everyone else so we can get ice cream and walk through Central Park at night. I know it'll be hard, but I wanted to ask you, can we give it another try? I'm willing if you are. Meet me at Ho's Deli tomorrow night and we'll talk about it. I'll be there at eight waiting for you. I still love you._

_-Michael_

Mia giggled and ran her fingers over the letter, and then she kissed it and returned it to the envelope. She and Michael had been secretly dating again since the night she'd met him at Ho's Deli. It was fun with nobody knowing they were together again. The sneaking around, the danger, the looks they exchanged when they were with friends, all made it even more exciting. Mia flipped through the pictures of Michael, Lilly, Boris, Tina, and herself and smiled. Life was sweet. For the first time in quite awhile, Mia was happy. Suddenly, there was a knock on Mia's door, pulling her out of her daydream. She shoved the journal and envelope under her mattress and the photos under her pillow. The door opened, and Mia's mother stuck her head in and smiled.

"Sweety? Can we talk?" She asked. Mia knew what was coming. She sat up on the bed and pulled Fat Louie into her lap. Her mom shut the door and sat on the edge of her bed.

"Frank just told me that he saw Michael outside." She said, pulling on the hem of her skirt. "And he said that you and he were—um—yeah." She brushed a piece of hair out of her eyes and went on, "So I was—um, wondering if you guys were back together—maybe?" Mia scratched Fat Louie's back and shook her head.

"Nope." She said, crossing her fingers under Fat Louie's big stomach. "We're just friends."

"But—" Helen started.

"No Mom. We aren't. It was just a misunderstanding." Mia said, smiling. Helen just shrugged and resumed messing the hem on her skirt. There was a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Mia yelled. Mr G pushed the door open and stepped in, holding Rocky, Mia's three-year-old brother.

"We've come to say goodnight." Mr G said, looking at his son and smiling. Rocky had a chocolate chip cookie in one hand and his other arm was around his dad's neck. Mia smiled and stood up. She went over to Mr G and scooped Rocky out of his arms.

"Come 'ere Rocks." She said, jiggling him and kissing his forehead. "Goodnight." She said, smiling.

"G'Night." He said, mumbling through his cookie. Mia kissed his forehead again, and Helen took Rocky from her.

"Goodnight Sweety." She said, kissing Mia's forehead, and then walking out to take Rocky to bed.

"Goodnight Mia." Mr G said, and they high fived before he walked out, leaving Mia alone again. She shut the door behind them, then flopped back onto her bed, pulling the pictures out from under her pillow and kissing Michael's picture before stuffing it in the envelope with the others. Then she put the envelope under her mattress again and went to change into her pajamas.


	3. Shock and Betrayal

Mia woke up the next morning to the sound of the front door slamming. She pushed the covers off of her and rubbed her eyes.

"What time is it?" She mumbled to herself as she picked up her clock. Ten o'clock. "Ugh." She said, making her way to the bathroom and splashing cold water on her face. She looked in the mirror and stuck out her tongue, giggling at what she saw in the reflection. Her hair was everywhere, as it always was in the morning, her eyes were squinty and her face had lines from where the sheets had been pressed to her skin. She turned on the shower head and adjusted the temperature, then let it run for a minute before undressing and climbing in. She stood with the hot water running down her back and started washing her hair.

"Mia!" Her mother yelled from her bedroom.

"Yeah?" She answered.

"Michael's on the phone!'

"Tell him I'll call him back in half an hour!" She yelled. She rinsed off her hair, turned off the water and wrapped a towel around her body and towel dried her hair. She threw on her favorite t-shirt and pajama bottoms, and then walked through the living room, into the kitchen. "Hey Mom," She said, taking a coffee mug out of the cupboard and filling it with milk, then pouring a little bit of coffee into it.

"Where's Mr G?" Her mom looked up from behind her newspaper and took her glasses off.

"He took Rocky to the park." She folded her paper rather sloppily and put it on the table. "Mia, are you sure things between you and Michael aren't—different?" She asked, getting up and refilling her coffee mug.

"Mom, things between me and Michael aren't any different. Things are fine. We're fine. The whole gang is fine." She said, grabbing a granola bar and taking the mug into her room. She threw on her robe and slippers, then opened the door and climbed out onto the fire escape. Although it was cold outside, Mia climbed out onto the fire escape every morning to have her coffee and granola bar. She sat curled in a ball in the corner and watched people pass by. Just as she was about to go back inside, she saw Boris come out of the jewlery store across the street.

"Boris!" She yelled, so that he looked up and waved at her. Then he walked past her apartment and she lost him in the crowd.

"Probably getting his mother a birthday present." Mia mumbled to herself, then went back inside and got dressed. Ten minutes later, she called Michael back.

"Moscovitz residence." He answered.

"Hey Michael." Mia said, running a brush through her short hair.

"Mia?" He whispered into the phone.

"Yeah." She said, and then waited for him to go in his room with the phone and shut the door.

"Hey." He said when the door was closed. "I'm so sorry about last night. I didn't think. Is Mr. G mad?"

"Uh uh, they're both suspecting something though. Mom tried to grill me last night, and she tried again this morning. We really need to be more careful." Mia said, pulling her hair back with a hair clip.

"I know." Michael said. "Oh, guess what?" He asked.

"What?"

"I found an apartment near Columbia for rent. I think I'm going to try to get it."

"Oh Michael, that's great!"

"Yup. It's really nice on the outside, and I'm going to go look at it tonight. Do you want to come?"

"Sure!" Mia said, putting on a little mascara and some lip gloss. "What time?"

"I tell you what, meet me at Central Park in an hour and we'll make a whole day of it. I'll call Lilly and we can hang with her until tonight."

"Okay. She knows right?"

"About us? Yeah, I'm pretty sure. I didn't tell her, but I think she does. Anyway, I think she saw us in the park yesterday."

"Yeah, I think so. Okay then, I'll see you there." She paused, "Love you." She whispered.

"Love you too." Michael said quickly before he hung up.

Mia put the phone back in the cradle and finished getting ready. When she emerged from her room, Mr G and her mom were standing in the living room talking.

"Frank, we've got to tell Mia soon. She'll get angry if we don't." Her mother was whispering.

"Tell me what Mom?" Mia asked. Her mom and Mr G looked around at her. Her mother bit her lip and sat down, patting the sofa beside her. Mia went over and sat down. "What's wrong?"

"Mia—Oh shit. Mia, Frank and I have decided—maybe it's time for a change. You know, this apartment is getting a little cramped what with four people living in it. Rocky is still staying in Frank and my bedroom. It's a little awkward." She said, glancing at Frank. "What we're trying to say is, we've decided to move."

"Oh," Mia said, "That sucks. I love this apartment."

"I know Mia."

"Oh! I saw this house down a few streets from here! It was for sale, so you and Mr G could check it out."

"Actually Mia," Frank said, "We've already found a house."

"Really? Where is it?" Mia asked excitedly.

"California." Her mother whispered. Mia couldn't say anything.

"C-California?" She choked.

"I know it's a long way from New York, but you'll make new friends, and go to a good school and it'll be wonderful."

"Um—God. I can't believe this. Thanks a lot for letting me know. Thanks for letting me get even MORE attatched to New York than I've been in my whole life! I can NOT believe you! Listen, I'm going to the park with Lilly and Michael. Later." Mia said, grabbing her coat, scarf, and hat and running out the door.

"Mia! Wait, when will you be home?!" Her mom ran to the door and yelled after her.

"I don't have one!" Yelled Mia from the bottom of the stairs, as she slammed the front door behind her.


	4. Surprises

Mia just had time to step out of her apartment before tears started pouring down her cheeks. She ran all the way to Central Park, hoping that Michael would be there early.

"How could Mr G and Mom be moving to California? Why? What about me?" She thought. She was thinking so hard she wasn't paying attention to where she was going.

"OOF!" She ran into something—more like some_one_. "Excuse me." She said, and shook her head, starting off again towards the park.

"Mia!" She felt a hand grab her arm and spin her around.

"Huh?"

"Mia, what's wrong? I was on my way to pick you up." Mia looked up into the face of Michael Moscovitz.

"Michael!" She wrapped her arms around his waist and started to cry into his jacket. And even though she was angry and confused about her mother and Mr G and moving to California, she still to the time to acknowledge the fact that Michael still smelled _really_ good. Michael pulled her off of him and walked her over to a bench. They sat down and he pulled Mia towards him, so that her head was on his chest and his arms were around her.

"Mia? Babe, what's wrong?" He asked after he rubbed her back and kissed the top of her head. Mia lifted her head off his chest and looked at him with red, swollen eyes.

"We're moving." Everything around Michael stopped. He couldn't hear anything except those two words replaying over and over inside his head. "We're moving."

"Mia, I can't—No Warning?." He said, hugging her. She shook her head. "When? Where? Why?" Mia told him what her mother had said to her, and Michael just nodded, listening until she was done.

"Shit." He said, running his hand through his curly, messy hair. Mia finally stopped crying and wiped her eyes.

"I'm sorry Michael. I swear I didn't know anything until this morning. Right before I left they told me." She said, holding his hand tight. Michael swore again. After awhile, they decided they'd go on with their plans as usual and meet Lilly.

"It's fine. C'mon." Michael said as Mia stood up and fixed her coat. He pulled her hat farther down over her head and kissed her. "It'll be fine." He said again, and then grabbed her hand and they went to meet Lilly.

Michael, Mia, and Lilly went to the arcade two blocks from the Park and spent three hours playing SkeeBall and Video Games. Then they went to lunch and called Tina and Boris and they all went back to Lilly's where they played Monopoly and Scrabble. Then, Boris and Michael pulled out their guitars and played "Tall Drink of Water" and "Rock Throwing Youths". Michael even started to play "Princess of my Heart," but before he could play anymore than a few cords, the doorbell rang. Lilly jumped up out of her chair, checked her reflection in the mirror, and jerked the door open. She talked to someone on the otherside for a minute, and then pulled a guy with fiery red hair and a sweater on into the room.

"Guys, I want you to meet my friend, Jeremiah." She said, smiling and pulling Jeremiah over to the sofa.

"Hey." He said shyly. Lilly introduced everyone to him and soon they started playing Monopoly again, with Jeremiah included this time. Everyone loved him. He was hilarious, and he was always making people feel better, like when Boris got landed in jail, he said,

"Well, I heard the food was really good there." Which of course made everyone laugh. He kept smiling at Lilly and whispering to her, and then she'd smile and giggle. Mia thought it was really sweet. When Lilly went to fix more drinks, Mia followed her into the kitchen.

"Lilly! Who is he? Where did you meet him?" She asked, pulling six glasses down from the cabinet.

" At school, he's in my public speaking class. He's—wow." Lilly smiled and held up her hands. "He used to be my partner, at the beginning of the year, but then we all got switched around. He cornered me after class one day and asked me out." She said, getting flustered.

"And..." Mia begged for details as she filled the glasses with ice.

"Well...we went on a few dates. I like him a lot Mia. And I think he likes me. He says—He told me that he liked how I spoke up for myself, but was still open to new ideas. And he's—wow—he's a great speaker, he isn't afraid of what people think of him, he's sweet, caring, he's really funny, he actually well—he kind of does magic tricks, like cards and stuff. It's really funny, although slightly annoying at times. But he stops if I ask him to—three or four times." Lilly and Mia burst into a fit of the giggles at this last statement from Lilly, drawing Tina into the kitchen.

"What are you two so worked up about?" She asked. Lilly repeated her story about Jeremiah and Tina laughed too. They finally filled the glasses with soda (Coke for Jeremiah, Lilly, and Tina, Water for Mia and Boris, and Sprite for Michael) and went back to the living room. Tina gave Boris his drink, and then sat on his knee while he played. Lilly sat next to Jeremiah and leaned on his shoulder while he asked her about buying properties. Mia sat with Michael and he held her hand under the table. After about thirty minutes, Boris had won the game, which was rare, because Michael almost _always _won Monopoly. Michael stood up and bowed.

"Okay, I'll give up my 4-year-old winning streak!" Then he reached behind him and grabbed a tiny bag. "Here you go Boris. Have your prize." Everyone looked at Michael like he was crazy. They'd never given out prizes before. "So what? I'm a nice person!" He said, throwing up his hands and shrugging, then winking at Mia. Boris grabbed the bag and pulled out a small box. He pushed back his chair and walked over to Tina. He hit one knee and opened the box. A small diamond ring flashed as light reflected off of it.

"Tina?" He asked. Tina was staring at him, mouth wide open and tears forming in her eyes. "Would you—will you marry me?"

"Yeah—yeah, I will." She said, full on crying at this point. She jumped up into Boris' outstretched arms and he held her tight against her. Everyone applauded and congratulated Tina and Boris and wished them luck. Then at six-thirty, Michael touched Mia's knee under the table and nodded his head towards the door. Mia told Lilly that they had to go and after wishing Tina and Boris well one last time, they left.


	5. The Grand Tour

It was a ten minute drive from Lilly's apartment to the one Michael had found. Michael helped Mia out of the car, then took her hand and they went inside. It was a nice place, with two bedrooms and two bathrooms, a huge kitchen and a nice living room. It was even furnished, although Michael decided he would use his own furniture from his bedroom, and he was going to buy a new sofa and chair.

"What do you think?" He asked her after the grand tour.

"Michael, it's wonderful! But what do you need two bedrooms for?" Mia asked, poking her head into the second bedroom.

"Oh, you know-- those late night rendevous with women I hardly know." He said, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. He pushed her hair out of the way and started to kiss her neck. She smiled and turned around.

"Michael..." She warned. "Not now..."

"Yes, now." Michael said as he kissed her lips. Mia pushed her arms out from under his chest and put them around his neck. He pushed her hair out of her eyes and opened the door to the bedroom. They stumbled into and fell onto the bed. Michael pulled off his t-shirt and threw it onto the bed. He kissed his way down her face and had his hand on the bottom of her sweater when his cell phone rang.

"Damn!" He cursed, rolling off of her and snatching the phone off his belt.

"Hello!!" He yelled into it.

"Michael? This is Helen Gianini, Mia's mother. Is she with you? She left this morning and we've called everywhere and can't seem to find her." She sounded very worried.

"No, she's not here." Michael said, watching Mia as she sat up and pulled her sweater down. She brushed her hair out of her face, then leaned her chin on Michael's shoulder.

"Oh, okay. Thanks again. If you see her, could you tell her to come home soon? Or at least call us?"

"Sure Ms. G. Bye."

"Bye." Michael turned off the phone and sighed. He ran a hand through his sloppy, curly hair and looked at Mia.

"Mom?" She asked. Michael nodded. Mia rolled her eyes sadly. "I'm sorry Michael."

"It's okay. C'mon, I'll drive you—wait a minute....wait just a---it might work, I'll have to ask first but...Mia, I think I know a way you can stay in New York."

"Huh?" Mia asked with her hand on the bedroom door knob.

"C'mon!" Michael pulled on his shirt and grabbed her hand. He dragged her out of the bedroom and out to the car. He sped all the way back to her apartment.


	6. Never Invisible

"Michael! You're about to pull my arm out of the socket!!" Mia yelled as they ran up to Mia's apartment. She laughed and tried to pull her wrist out of Michael's grasp. As Michael skidded to a stop outside her apartment, the door was yanked open and Mia's mother looked at them with a relieved expression on her face.

"Mia!" She said, and threw her arms around Mia's shoulders.

"Mom, I—can't—breathe!!" She tried to wiggle out of her mother's arms. Michael stood back and waited until Mia's mom invited him in. It took a long time of Mia explaining where she was, and her mom apologizing for telling her about the move in such an awkward way, but after the neighbors came out to see what the fuss was, they finally moved into Mia's apartment.

"You're home! Thank God you're okay!" Mr G said, standing up and dropping his newspaper in his chair.

"Mr G, I'm fine." Mia said, as she grabbed Michael's wrist and pulled him over to the sofa. Rocky appeared at his bedroom door, rubbing his little red eyes and sniffing. He ran over to the sofa and climbed up on Mia's lap.

"We thought you runned away!" He said into her sweater, still sniffing. Mia put her arms around him and rubbed his back.

"I'm home now Rocks. Look who else is here! It's Michael!" She said, as Rocky looked up and climbed into Michael's lap.

"Hey Rocky," Michael laughed.

"Hi Michael!" Rocky said. Helen went over to the sofa and lifted Rocky off Michael.

"Sorry," She apologized, "I'll be right back. Let me put Rocky back in bed. Say goodnight Rocky."

"G'Night." He called from the bedroom. Mia's mom appeared a few minutes later and gently closed Rocky's door. She walked over to the sofa opposite Michael and Mia and sat down next to Mr G. She placed a hand on his knee as he put his arm around her.

"Mom, Mr G----Michael wanted to tell you something." Mia said, smiling in Michael's direction. Michael ran a hand through his hair and looked at Mia's mother and stepdad.

"I—we—the gang doesn't want Mia to move to California. She has friends here, and at our age, it's kind of hard to make friends in new places... "He looked at Mia and she slipped her hand subtley over to Michael and touched his arm. If her mom noticed, she hadn't said anything.

"Michael, I know how you all feel about Mia's leaving, but we can't really help it. We, Frank and I, really want to move to California. It's a new opportunity for my painting, Frank needs to see his family more, and there are good schools for Rocky and Mia." Her mother said.

"I know, but there are also wonderful schools in New York. As I'm sure you already know, Mia submitted her application to Columbia and got accepted. She has a life here. I know you'll sell the apartment when you leave, and Mia, I know you don't want to live in a dorm, so I have a proposition to make." Michael said, twisting his hands nervously.

"Go on." Mr G said.

"Well, I've bought a new apartment. I thought maybe Mia could live with me." Michael, seeing the shocked expression on Mia' s mother's face, held up his hands and continued. "Now, I don't mean Mia live with me in a romantic, boyfriend/ girlfriend kind of way. My apartment has two bedrooms, two baths, and is big enough for two people. She can have her own life. It doesn't have to include me in any way. You know we haven't been seeing each other for awhile, so..." Michael drifted off, seeing the dazed look on their faces. After a few minutes of silence, Michael looked at his watch, 1:30 in the morning.

"I, uh, I probably need to go." He said, standing up quickly.

"I'll go lock up after him," Mia said, following him into the front room. "Michael, that was—very sweet. Thank you." She looked over her shoulder to make sure her mom wasn't watching and pecked Michael on the cheek. Michael squeezed her waist and opened the door.

"It's no big deal. Just—call me tomorrow to see how things go." He said. Then he was gone. Mia smiled and locked the door. She walked back into the living room and stood by the sofa. She noticed Michael had left his hat, so she grabbed it.

"I'll give it back to him tomorrow." She said to her mom, and started to go back to her room.

"Sit." Her mother said quickly. Mia dropped onto the couch. "Do you want to move in with him?" Her mom asked. Mia nodded.

"Very much." She whispered. Her mom looked at Mr G. 

"Frank?" She asked, looking like she was going to cry. Mr G looked at Mia, then back at his wife.

"How about this, Mia, you go on to bed. Your mother and I can talk about this, and we'll get back to you in the morning." Mia and her mother agreed that this was the best plan. Mia stood and kissed her mom goodnight. When she got to Mr G, she started to give him a high-five, but at the last minute, hugged him instead and whispered, "Thanks" , into his ear. She ran off into her room and shut the door. She was changing clothes when she heard a noise come from her computer. She walked over and exited her away message. The minute she did, an instant message popped up on her screen.

_**CracKing**: Mia, are they mad? I knew I should have asked you first. I'm so sorry._

_**FtLouie: **No Michael, they're fine. They're going to talk about it tonight and get back to me in the morning. Actually, I think Mr. G might be on our side. _

_**CracKing: **Good, I'm glad. But are you angry I didn't ask you first? _

_**FtLouie**: No! I wouldn't have had the guts to ask them! I'm happy you didn't ask! I hope they say it's alright. I'd love to live with you. _

_**CracKing: **I love you. _

_**FtLouie:** Really?_

_**CracKing: **Ah, yeah. Yeah I do. _

_**FtLouie:** I love you too. Michael?_

_**CracKing**: ?_

_**FtLouie**: Thanks._

_**CracKing**: For what?_

_**FtLouie**: Seeing me when I was invisible. _

_**CracKing**: You were never invisible to me. You were the first thing I saw when I woke up and the last thing I saw when I went to sleep. _

There was a long, awkward pause.

_**FtLouie: **'Thanks. I've got to go, it's late, and I'm tired. _

_**CracKing: **Ok. I'll see you tomorrow then?_

_**FtLouie: **Yeah, see you. _

Then she signed off.

"He loves me?" She said quietly, then she yelled, "Oh my God!! He loves me!" And jumped up on her bed.

"Mia, are you okay?" Her mother yelled from the living room.

"I'm fine!" She said, falling onto her bed and grabbing a pillow. She lay down and wrapped her arms around it.

"He loves me." She said again, then turned off her light and pulled up her covers, and soon she'd fallen asleep.


	7. Worries and Bribery Breakfasts

Mia was woken up at 4:30 the next morning by a soft tapping noise. She sat up and looked around, trying to figure out where it was coming from. She was about to roll over and go back to sleep when she saw someone standing on the fire escape.

"Oh my God!" She yelled, jumping out of bed and pulling open the window.

"Michael, what are you doing?" She asked, as she pulled him inside. She shut the window behind him and whirled around. He ran a hand through his hair and grabbed her shoulders.

"I couldn't sleep. I'm sorry I woke you up. I was worried. I thought you were mad, and you weren't answering your phone." He said, and wrapped his arms around her. He buried his face in her hair and rocked back and forth. Mia pushed him away and led him over to the bed.

"Michael." She soothed, pushing his hair out of his face. He grabbed her hand and kissed it. Mia put her arm around him and he leaned on her. "It's okay." She said, "I'm not angry. And my phone is on mute because I'm tired of Grandmere calling me. Don't worry, it's fine. I _love_ _you_, remember?" Michael nodded. Mia stroked his face and let him tell her how worried he was. After a while, they both fell asleep. Later, around 7, Michael woke up. He realized how much more trouble they would both be in if he was found asleep in her room, so he jotted a note down and put it on the bed next to her. He kissed her cheek and hurried out through the fire escape. Mia woke up a few minutes later and reached for Michael. Her hand fell onto the piece of paper instead of Michael's soft t-shirt.

"Wha--?" She muttered as she grabbed the note and read it:

_Mia, _

_Didn't want to get caught with you by your Mom and Mr G. I love you. I'll see you this afternoon, call when you wake up. Love, _

_Michael_

Mia smiled and folded the note up, slipping it inside the envelope under her mattress. She hurried in and out of the shower, got dressed, put on make up, and rushed out into the living room. Her mom and Mr G were both lying on the couch, fast asleep. They must have fallen asleep while they were arguing about Michael. Mia smiled and went into the kitchen. She made a pot of fresh coffee and started a batch of pancakes. She heard someone moving behind her, so she turned around. Mr G was sitting up on the couch, rubbing his face with his hands. Her mother was still lying down, asleep.

"Hey Mia." He said, coming into the kitchen and sitting down. He rubbed his neck and put on his glasses. "Making us a bribery breakfast?" Mia laughed and shook her head.

"Nope. I was just hungry, and since nobody was awake, I figured I'd make Rocky his pancakes since Mom was obviously too tired. Can you watch these for a minute? I need to go wake up Rocky." Mr G nodded and got up. He poured himself a cup of coffee while Mia went into Rocky's room.

"Rocks?" She called, shaking Rocky gently. "Time to get up and go to daycare!" She called. Rocky mumbled and complained, but she finally got him dressed and ready. She held her finger to her lips and took him out to get his breakfast.

"You have to be quiet, because Mommy's still asleep." She whispered. Rocky nodded and quickly ate his pancakes, dripping with syrup and butter. Mr G showered, changed clothes, and pulled on his jacket.

"Come on Rocky." He called quietly. Rocky dropped out of his chair and scampered over to his dad, who helped him put on his jacket and the two left. Mia washed the dishes and put out three plates on the table. She put out syrup and butter and milk and coffee mugs. After about 15 minutes, she heard her mother moving around.

"Morning Mom." She called from the kitchen. Her mother padded into the kitchen and sat down.

"Ugh." She rubbed her eyes kissed Mia good morning. "Frank dropping off Rocky?" She asked.

"Yep." Mia put two pancakes on her Mom's plate, three on Mr G's, and one on hers. She pulled a bowl of grapes out of the refrigerator and put them on the table. Mr G came in then and joined the table.

"Okay," Mia's mom said, "Let's talk about Michael."


	8. Agreed

(Note—I didn't know if Mia's mom never took Mr. G's last name, because I didn't have the book w/ me, so I kinda just made a guess. Thanks for telling me, so now she can be Ms. T!! :-D)

By the way, this chapter is super short, but I was having a problem, I hate confrontation and I hate it when your parents think that every single reference to a guy is taboo. Ugh!

* * *

Mia's mom stood up and went into her studio two hours later. Mr. G and Mia were left at the table staring at the breakfast dishes.

"I'm sorry you had to go through all that Mia." Mr. G patted her hand.

"It's okay; she's just worried I guess." Mia said, watching her mom as she started to move around her studio.

Mia's mother had gone from hesitant mother ("I don't want to lose my baby."), to annoying mother ("Make sure you call me every week, no, every few days, no..."), to scary, boy-that-my-daughter-is-going-to-live-with attacker ("If Michael Moscovitz lays so much as a finger on you, I'll send Frank over to New York and he'll be the crap out of that boy!"). Mia didn't know what to think. She could tell that Mr. G knew that she wanted to stay in New York—a lot—and had persuaded her mom to let her stay. But Mia was upset at seeing her mom angry and sad.

"She's going to miss you Mia, but she'll be okay." Mr. G said, seeing that Mia looked slightly upset. Mia got up and picked up all of the dishes, taking them over to the dishwasher and stuffing them in.

"I know, I'm going to miss her too, but I'm going to have to move out sometime, and I'd rather be in New York than California any day." Mia brushed a stray piece of hair off her face before turning around and putting her hands on her hips. "And it's not like Michael is some stranger I just met on the street, I've known him since—God, I can't even remember how long I've known him!"

"I know that Mia—your mother knows that—but we still have the reason to worry. People change, circumstances change--" Mr. G paused and he lowered his voice, "—as I'm sure you know very well. Um--You and Michael are together again aren't you?" Mia's eyes grew large. Mr. G smiled and looked at her through the top of his glasses.

"Mr. G, please don't tell anybody, it's a secret, we don't want anyone to know—"Mia begged. Mr. G held up his hands.

"Mia, it's your decision. You're on your own now. By the way, you probably are going to need to get a job so you can pay your rent, buy food, clothes, and whatever else you need. Your mother and I have decided to help you until you get settled, but part of moving out means you need to get a job."

"I know Mr. G. I've been planning too you know." Mia grinned. "Thanks for everything though. I have to go get changed, I'm meeting Lilly in a few minutes. Bye!" She yelled, running into her room. Mr. G sat and watched her run through the house after she'd gotten dressed, thanking him, grabbing her scarf, hat, gloves, coat, and Michael's hat and running out the door. Mr. G just laughed and kept on reading his newspaper.


	9. A Long Story

Three months and two days later, Mia was moving her stuff into Michael's apartment. Mia was on the floor in her room unpacking her stuff when Michael came in and dropped another box of her things on her bed.

"God, Mia, how much stuff can you possibly have?" He laughed and started going through the box.

"Hey! Did I give you permission to go through that?" Mia said, standing up and slapping his hands away from some of her old dresses.

"Look at me as the pesky older brother that goes through his little sisters stuff..." He said, and pulled a long dress out of the box. Mia snorted.

"I'd rather not, thank you." She said. Michael looked at the frosty blue dress for a minute, then held it up to his body and fluttered his eyelashes.

"Does it match my eyes Dahling?" He mocked in a high squeaky voice.

"Michael!" Mia was laughing so hard she couldn't breathe, "Put it down! Put it away!" She laughed, then snatched the dress away from him held it behind her back. Michael gasped and crossed his arms over his chest and legs.

"Oh my! How dare you take my clothes away like that! You have left me in the nude!" He kept using the high, squeaky voice and started chasing Mia around the room, trying to get the dress. He finally cornered her and pinned her down onto the bed. "Give me back my dress you filthy beast!" He squealed, then started tickling Mia.

"Michael! No! Stop---that tickles! Michael! Stop it!" Mia laughed and rolled all over the bed. Michael finally got the dress away from her and threw it into the box.

"I don't think I look too hot in a dress...what about you?" He laughed, still tickling her.

"I like you better in pants!" Mia squealed. Michael finallly stopped tickling her and kissed her nose.

"Wow Mia, I never knew you liked me like that!" He laughed, and then walked out the door to get another box from the living room. Mia sat up and smiled. "I have got the best boyfriend!" She thought as she picked up the dress and put it on a hanger. Michael brought in three more boxes, and then helped Mia hang her clothes up in her closet.

"Whoa! He yelled as he picked up a lacy tank top with a matching lacy skirt. "What in the heck is this?" He held it up to his body. It didn't even reach his hips.

"Long story." She muttered, and then stuffed it into the back of a drawer.

"I have all day." He said laughing and crossing his arms.

"Grandmere bought it for me. She said it would help out with my 'marital duties', I told her I didn't intend to have any in the next few years, but she bought it for me anyway. She gave it to me, along with a speech on how it should be used properly to 'tempt my victim', in front of my _dad. _**That** was an awkward situation let me tell you." Mia blushed, remembering. Michael cracked up.

"She gave it to you in front of your—"He howled and laughed, and rolled on the floor dramatically. Mia rolled her eyes and dropped to her knees next to Michael.

"Michael—" He ignored her, "Michael!!" He ignored her again, "MICHAEL!" At this point she had pinned his arms to the floor and sat on him with her legs on either side of his hips. "Would you listen to me?!" She yelled, but she wasn't mad, she was still grinning.

"That depends." Michael said, "If you are going to tell me more about your—your—_teddy_, he said, referring to the lacy outfit, "I might. But if you're going to stay sitting on me, I'm not going to be able to." He said. Mia smiled.

"I'm not telling you anymore stories." She said, starting to get off of him. Before she could, Michael grabbed her wrist and pulled her back down. He leaned up and kissed her. He fell back down onto the floor and she was pulled down next to him. He rolled on top of her and started to unbutton her sweater.

Twenty minutes later, Michael left her bedroom. He was grinning as he ran a hand through his damp hair. He walked over to the kitchen and grabbed a shot glass. He'd filled it half-way when Mia came to her door wearing only her t-shirt. Her hair was messy and she was smirking.

"So I drove you to drink, huh?" She said, leaning on the door frame and crossing her arms. Michael grinned and downed the shot.

"God Mia, after that experience, any man would need a drink." Mia shrugged and started to go back into her room. "Hey!" He yelled, causing Mia to come back out.

"Hmm?"

"Don't tell me your grandmother taught you that too—"He laughed, and then ducked as a pillow flew in his direction.

"Michael! That is sick!" She squealed, then ran into the kitchen and jumped onto his back.

"Hey!" He laughed and turned around. Mia dropped off his back and put her arms around his waist.

"You weren't disappointed were you?" She asked quietly. Michael shook his head.

"Never in a million years." He kissed her forehead and put his arms around her. He was about to offer to make her lunch when the phone rang. He reached over to answer it on the second ring.

"Huh? Oh, hey Lillly. Yeah, we're home. Duh, of course Mia's with me, she _lives_ _here_. No we---I thought we could—but Lilly—oh fine, whatever. Bring him over. Yeah, see you. Uh huh, Love you too, see you in five. Bye." Michael hung up the phone and turned to Mia. "You might want to put some clothes on. Lilly's coming over with Jeremiah, she wants us to go out for lunch, kind of a double date." He said. Mia smiled.

"Double date? God, I haven't been on one of those in a few years. Do you remember the last one? It was you, me, Lilly, and _Boris_." She smiled.

"Mia, are you getting tired of us not telling anyone?" He asked, brushing hair out of her eyes.

"I love the secretiveness, but, I kind of wish—you know, people could know why I'm so happy."

"I tell you what. One more week and we'll tell them all. Okay?" He said kissing her neck.

"Great." She threw her arms around his neck and gave him a hug. Smiling, she pecked Michael on the cheek and ran into her room just as the doorbell rang.


	10. Scary Images

Michael waited to make sure Mia's door was shut before he went out to answer the door.

"Hey Lilly." He said as he opened the door.

"Michael, would you _please_ put a shirt on?" Lilly rolled her eyes.

"Geez, what's wrong with you?" Michael asked grabbing his shirt from the back of the sofa and pulling it on.

"Nothing, I'm just tired of seeing you without your shirt on. Why don't you leave it on? Oh yeah, I forgot, _Mia _is here. Where is Mia anyway?" She dropped her messenger bag on the floor next to the sofa and walked over to the door. She knocked, then let herself in anyway, saying, "Mia, don't have a heart failure, it's your amazing best friend, Lilly." Michael laughed and turned to the counter to put away the bottle and shot glass he'd used before. He washed and rinsed off the glass, and put it in the cabinet.

"Lilly, Mia, you want something to drink?" He yelled towards Mia's bedroom.

"Um, sure!"

"Yeah!"

So Michael pulled out a bottle of water for Mia, a Coke for Lilly, and a Sprite for himself, put the girls' on the counter, and then flopped over onto the sofa.

**MEANWHILE (In Mia's room)**

"Mia, don't have a heart failure, it's your amazing best friend, Lilly." The door to Mia's bedroom opened as she tried to squeeze into her jeans.

"Oh, hey Lilly. What's up?" Mia said coolly as she watched Lilly drop onto her bed. Lilly picked up a magazine that was on Mia's bed and flipped through it.

"Not much, what have you and Michael been doing today?" Lilly asked absently.

"Not much, just unpacking and stuff."

While she was watching Lilly, she happened to see out of the corner of her eye, the lacy outfit Michael had thrown aside when they'd—well, um, you know'd; it was lying on her dresser. Mia darted over to the dresser and tried to hide it, but Lilly was too quick for her. Lilly picked it up and raised her eyebrows at Mia.

"Unpacking huh?" She grinned and threw the outfit at Mia, who caught it.

"It's not like I was wearing it!" Mia tried to explain, but then realized what she'd said and slapped her hands over her mouth. "I mean—I wasn't wearing it while we were—we didn't DO anything—LILLY!" She started laughing because Lilly was making funny faces and laughing and gagging. "Lilly!" Mia yelled, throwing it at Lilly and flopping down on the bed. "Ugh!" Lilly was still laughing when she came to sit next to Mia.

"Mia, what you do with your boyfriend is one thing. I'd love to hear about your 'love life'. But, no offense or anything, when your love life includes my older brother, I don't particularly want to know anything. I don't want to be haunted with scary images." She started laughing again. Mia threw a pillow at Lilly's head, then rolled over and stared at her.

"Michael is amazing." Mia started, but Lilly stuck her fingers in her ears and started singing "The Sound of Music". Mia laughed and pulled Lilly's fingers out of her ears. "How's Jeremiah?" She asked. Lilly smiled, but rolled her eyes.

"I wouldn't know. We haven't _done_ anything. I mean, he's a really good kisser, and he's really sweet, and I really think I like him—really like him." Lilly smiled and leaned back. "Who would have thought that ugly, pug-faced, anti-everything, Lilly Moscovitz would actually find someone that would make her question her beliefs on everything radical?" Mia and Lilly laughed.

"Lilly, Mia, you want something to drink?" Michael yelled from the kitchen.

"Um, sure!" Lilly yelled.

"Yeah! Listen Lilly, I think we'd better go on out. Michael's probably wondering if you flushed me down a toilet or something." Mia said, pulling on a pink sweater.

They went out into the living room and grabbed their drinks. Mia went over and curled up next to Michael, who put his arm around her. Lilly sat on the opposite couch, alone.

"Where's Jeremiah?" Mia asked.

"Oh, he'll be here in a few minutes. He got lost on his way to my house, so I just told him to come here because he was closer to it. He should have been here by now." Just as Lilly got up to go look out the window down at the street, the phone rang.

Mia answered, "Hello, Moscovitz and Thermopolis residence." She grinned at Michael and he grabbed her hand. "Yeah. Oh my God, when?" The smile melted off of Mia's face. "Yeah, she's here. Lilly, it's for you—Jeremiah's in the hospital." Mia said, holding the phone out to Lilly. Lilly grabbed the phone from her.

"Yes? Oh no. God. I—no, I'm not family, I'm his girlfriend, yes, I'll be right there." She hung up and ran over to the coat rack.

"Lilly, what's wrong?" Michael said, grabbing his and Mia's coats, his keys, and Mia's purse of the rack. He threw Mia her purse and coat and they ran out the door.

"Jeremiah is in the hospital. A car ran into him." She explained.


	11. Jeremiah's Down

"Well, it's not too terrible is it? They didn't hit him too hard did they?" Mia asked as Michael pushed her into the car and Lilly jumped into the back seat.

"He wasn't in his car. He was crossing the street with a huge group of people when—I don't know...they said a guy on a motorbike lost control and hit a car, then the man driving the car lost control and ran into the crowd of pedestrians. The car hit Jeremiah and another boy who was walking near Jeremiah The boy didn't see it coming, he got pinned to a lightpole by the car." Lilly said, twisting the end of her scarf and crying. "But Jeremiah got hit too, when the car swerved, he got the rear end of the car."

"Oh my god." Mia said and tried to calm Lilly down. At that point, Michael pulled up in front of the hospital. Lilly and Mia ran in while he parked the car. The nurses told Lilly she could go back, but Mia would have to stay in the waiting room. Mia sat down and waited for Michael to come. After twenty minutes, he came in through the double doors.

"Michael!" Mia yelled across the room. Michael turned to her and walked over.

"Have you heard anything?" He asked. "I couldn't find a space, I'm sorry I took so long."

"No. Lilly is with him. Michael I'm so scared." Mia said, burying her head in Michael's chest, crying. In the past few months, Jeremiah had become one of the gang. Everyone loved him; he always found the good side of the worst situations. Neither Michael nor Mia wanted to know what would happen if he wasn't around anymore. Michael held Mia until she stopped crying, then they went into the cafeteria and waited there, with hot cups of coffee in their hands. Lilly came into the cafeteria after an hour and sat down next to Mia. Michael went to get her a cup of coffee.

"He looks bad." Lilly choked out quietly. "He's got three broken ribs, bruises all over him, a long gash going down the side of his face—He doesn't look like my Jeremiah at all." She started crying and Mia put her arms around Lilly and let her cry. Mia smoothed her hair out of her face and whispered reassuuring things to her. After a while, Lilly straightened up and wiped off her face. "The doctor thinks he'll be fine, but he won't talk to me. He just stares. He smiled, but he won't talk." Lilly said, holding up her hands. "I don't know what to do." She burst into tears again.

Mia looked at Michael as he pushed the cup of coffee towards Lilly. She calmed Lilly down again and got her to sit up. Michael pulled his chair around the table so that he was on Lilly's other side.

"Lilly, do you want to stay with me and Mia for a few days? It's closer to the hospital than your place and that way ou can visit Jeremiah when ever you need to. We'd be glad to have you." He said, rubbing her back.

"Yeah Lilly, I have one of those blow-up beds you can sleep on in my room." Mia offered, then added, "We can order pizza, and watch movies, Jeremiah doesn't want you lying around sobbing over him. He's going to want you to have fun." Lilly nodded and thanked Michael and Mia. Just then, a nurse came over the P.A. system,

"Miss Lilly Moscovitz, please report to room 211."

Lilly ran off towards the cafeteria doors. Mia sat in Lillly's now empty chair and leaned on Michael's shoulder.

"That was the sweetest thing you've ever done." She said, pecking his cheek.

"What?" Michael took a long swallow of his coffee.

"Giving up 'our' time so Lilly can be close to Jeremiah."

"Ah, it's no big deal, she's my sister--"

"--And most guys wouldn't give up their girlfriend time for their sister. So thank you." She kissed his cheek again, pulled on her coat, and they went off to find Lilly.


	12. An Angry Exchange

Two weeks later Jeremiah was four days off getting released from the hospital. Lilly had, of course, stayed with Michael and Mia the whole time, and although Michael loved his sister, he really wanted her _out_. Mia, Michael, and Lilly had all gone to see Jeremiah that afternoon to lift his spirits and get him ready to come home. After their visit they all went back to the apartment for some ice cream. Lilly and Mia had challenged Michael to a race up to the apartment—first one there got to choose the toppings on the pizza they ordered that night. Michael was up the stairs in a heartbeat, leaving Lilly and Mia far behind. Mia stopped because she hit her elbow on the banister, so she was last to the apartment. When she got there, her arm was bleeding a little, but nothing serious. She walked through the open door and ran into Michael.

"Michael, what are you doing? Why are you stopped in the middle of the--?" Mia dropped her bags on the floor. She realized why he'd stopped and gone silent. Mia's **grandmother** stood near the sofa glaring at them.

"_Grandmere!?_ What on earth are you doing here? How did you get in?" She asked, stepping in front of Michael as if to protect him.

"The landlord let me in. But don't you change the subject! Are you—"She pointed a long, crooked finger at Mia, "—and you—" she pointed the same long, crooked finger at Michael, "—living in this...apartment....together?" She hissed.

"Yeah Grandmere." Mia replied in a disturbingly quiet tone.

"You will not use the word **YEAH** to me! You say _Yes Grandmere_."

"Y-Yes Grandmere." Mia repeated even quieter than before.

"You are living with this—idiot musician, unmarried, and obviously not engaged?" She yelled. Michael, who had his hand on Mia's back, felt her stiffen and saw her hands clench into fists.

"_Yes Grandmere." _She said through clenched teeth. She was shaking now.

"You will come with me. We are going back to Genovia—" Her grandmother growled and then walked towards the door. But she stopped in front of Michael and glared at him. "—where you belong." She hissed, face 3 inches from his.

"Grandmere, I am not going anywhere." Mia said, crossing her arms and glaring at her Grandmother. Lilly's eyes got wide as she watched from across the room. The woman called Grandmere stiffened, then turned on her heel to face Mia.

"What did you say to me?" She asked.

"I said I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying right here—with Michael." She slipped her arm through his and they faced her grandmother together. Surprisingly her Grandmother just rolled her eyes and snapped her fingers. Within a few seconds, three large, muscular men in black suits glared at Mia and Michael.

"I didn't think you'd come willingly. So I brought along some reinforcements." She said, then snapped her fingers again. The three guards came towards the couple. Mia tried to hold onto Michael, but while two of the guards held him back, the other one grabbed a struggling Mia and carried her out the door. Lilly started to go after her, but one of the guards holding Michael grabbed her as well.

"MIA!" Michael screamed. "MIA! YOUR MAJESTY! COME BACK!" Michael felt one of the guards pull both of his arms back, and the other put a cloth in front of Michael's nose and mouth and held it there. Michael struggled for a moment, and then fell to the floor in a heap.

"Michael!" Lilly screamed, kicked, and bit the guard that was holding her back, until he finally let her go. The two remaining guards rushed out the door. Lilly dropped down next to Michael and tried to get him to come to. That's when she noticed something on the floor. She reached over and picked it up. It was a ticket.

_**Flight: 104 **_

_**Destination: Genovia **_

_**Flight Departure: 5:30 pm**_

She heard Michael moving. She stuffed the ticket in her pocket and crawled back over to him. Michael shook his head and sat up.

"Where's Mia?" He mumbled. "I've got to find Mia." Lilly helped him up and they ran down to the car. She got him woken up and able to see straight, then filled him in on her plan.

"Go Lilly! You rock!" Michael grinned, taking the ticket she presented him. He pulled the sleeve of his arm up and checked his watch: 5:20. He had just enough time to get on the plane. He ran into the airport and found the flight gate. He'd made it. He was on the plane. The last ones to board were Mia, her grandmother, and one of the body guards. The bodyguard was practically carrying Mia. They had obviously drugged her, so she couldn't struggle. The flight attendant escorted them to the seats that were reserved especially for them. They sat down in seats directly in front of Michael. Michael hid his face and prayed the bodyguard wouldn't turn around the rest of the way to Genovia.


	13. Saving Princess Mia

Michael stood outside the Genovian castle and looked up. There was a light on in Mia's window and Michael could see shadows flickering and moving around on the walls. He looked around for something—a tree, a vine—anything to help him climb the wall and get a better look into Mia's room. He noticed that the brick walls of the castle had small gaps between the bricks and some of them were slightly loose. Michael put his hand in one of the gaps and a foot in another and pulled himself up onto the wall. He and Mia had gone rock climbing when they had first started dating. He wished Mia were with him, she was a really awesome rock climber. Michael found another gap and pulled himself up to that one. Slowly he made his way up the wall, stopping whenever he heard a noise and pressing himself into the brick so he wouldn't be seen. He finally got close enough that he could climb over onto Mia's balcony. He pulled himself over the railings and hid beside the half open window. He looked in to see Mia sitting in front of a vanity with a huge mirror. A maid stood behind her, brushing her hair. Mia's eyes were red and her make-up was smeared. The maid was talking to her, but Mia wasn't responding, she just stared into the mirror blankly.

"I'm real sorry Princess. I never dreamed they'd bring you home like that! Imagine, being knocked out in New York and waking at home, in Genovia. That's must have been a great shock---"The maid was babbling as she brushed Mia's hair over and over again. Mia's eyes flashed.

"Genovia is NOT my home. My home is in New York." Mia whispered stonily.

"I-I'm sorry Princess, I didn't mean to make you angry." The maid whimpered.

"No, No I'm sorry Miranda; I didn't mean to snap at you. I really am sorry." She said, noticing the scared expression on the Miranda's face. "That's all for tonight. Thank you." Mia said, taking the brush gently from Miranda and laying it on the dressing table. Miranda curtsied and walked out, shutting the door behind her.

Mia went into her walk-in-closet and put on her pajamas. Michael noticed that they were the ones he'd given her for her birthday last year. They had French words written all over the bottoms, and the top had the word "_Amore_" on it. Mia smiled weakly as she walked over to her bed and sat on the edge. She bent down and pulled something out from under her bed. It looked like a DVD. She walked over to her television and popped it in the DVD player.

A picture of Michael and Lilly flashed up onto the screen. They were grinning and laughing. The camera moved panned over the room, they were in Mia's apartment. It was her birthday party from 2 months ago. The video went on to show Boris, Tina, and Jeremiah fooling around and throwing pillows at each other. Michael was tuning his guitar, but when he noticed the camara on him, he blew a kiss towards it. Lilly grinned at the camera and walked over toward it. She disappeared from view, but you could hear her asking Mia (who was working the camera);

"Isn't it great?"

"Yeah Lilly. It is. Thanks for everything." Mia replied. 

"Don't thank me, thank Michael." Lilly's voice vanished, and so did the picture. Michael looked to see what Mia was doing. She was fast forwarding. After a minute, she stopped. Michael watched as Mia's eyes filled with tears that spilled over and ran down her face. Michael's guitar played the first few chords of "Princess of my Heart." When he started singing, Mia pulled her pillows up to her face and cried. Michael couldn't take it anymore; he quietly eased the window open and tiptoed over to Mia's bed. He knelt down by her and waited for her to finish crying. When she did, she opened her eyes and yelped.

"Michael! How did you---? Where did you---? Wait, how long have you---? Michael!" She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. "God, I thought I'd never see you again." She held onto him for dear life. They heard the door knob turn and Mia pushed Michael into the walk-in-closet. Michael heard a voice.

"Princess, what's going on in here?" The voice asked. It was very low and raspy. 

"I'm watching a movie Hans, a _movie_. A DVD isn't going to kidnap me which is more than I can say for my _family_. She hissed, and then flopped down on the bed. The guard shut the door and Michael heard a key scrape in the lock. Mia waited a minute and ran over to the closet.

"Michael you're going to get caught and you'll be in big trouble. They could hurt you, throw you in jail—I don't know what Grandmere is capable of anymore. I haven't seen Dad or Lars the whole time I've been here and—"

"Mia, they aren't going to find me. Even if they do, they'll just send me back to New York. And that won't work because I'll come right back here. Don't worry." He said, holding her to him and stroking her hair. Michael jumped as he heard a knock on the wall. Mia stiffened and pushed Michael behind a rack of dresses and covered him.

"C'mon." A voice said on the other side of the wall. Michael gasped as he watched a panel in the wall open up—it was a hidden door. Lars and Prince Phillip appeared.

"Dad!" Mia squealed and ran over to him. "Lars! Where have you been? Why is Grandmere doing this to me?" Prince Phillip filled Mia in on how Mia's grandmother had heard that someone was going to try to over throw the throne, then, about an hour after her plane from New York had landed, she disappeared.

"Mia, someone has taken your grandmother. We don't know where, but the palace is being watched even as we speak. Your grandmother did not post all of these guards, they're all over the castle, and they aren't Renaldo guards. We are in grave danger if we stay here. Pack a small bag, because you, Lars, and I are going back to New York." Her father explained. Mia ran into her room and grabbed a bag and threw in some jeans, a two t-shirts, and a pair of pants that Michael had left in Genovia when he was here last summer. Michael realized that she was packing some things for _him_. Her father looked after her curiously as she threw in a brush and the DVD. She grabbed her purse and stuffed it in as well.

"Mia—what are you doing?" Her father asked, looking at Michael's pair of pants.

"Michael is here. He's hiding in the closet behind my dress rack." She said from the bathroom, where she was changing out of her PJs. Her father walked over to the rack and pulled back the dresses.

"Hey Mr. Ren—I mean, Your Highness." Michael gave a short bow before Prince Phillip pushed him, Mia, and Lars into the secret passage way and eased the door shut behind them.


	14. Hold onto Me

The passage was very narrow and dark so Michael, Mia, Prince Phillip, and Lars had to stay in one line. Lars was in front and Michael was in the back. After what seemed about an hour of walking, the group reached the end of the passage. Lars slid a panel of the wall over and peeked out. It was dark, there was no one outside.

"It's cold, Princess. Put on your jacket." He told Mia then looked out again. There was no one around, so he motioned for the others to follow him. They shut the panel and followed close behind. All of a sudden, Lars stopped. He shoved Prince Philip, Mia and Michael up against a wall, behind some bushes. They dropped to their knees and pressed into the wall.

"Don't move." Lars mouthed silently. The bushes weren't large enough for all of them to get against the wall, so Michael got behind Mia and put his arms around her to keep her warm. The jacket she'd brought was very light and didn't keep her warm at all. Michael heard footsteps behind them and closed his eyes, praying that they wouldn't be seen. Mia stiffened and whimpered slightly. The footsteps stopped. They'd been heard. The footsteps walked towards the bushes and stopped. No one moved. No one made a sound. After what seemed like eternity, the footsteps moved away again, and faded off in the distance. Lars stood up quietly and checked to make sure there weren't anymore guards around. Prince Philip looked over at Michael who was trying to calm Mia down, she was almost in hysterics.

"Mia," He was whispering, "Babe, it's going to be fine. They didn't hear you." He rubbed her arms to try to keep her warm.

"You're fine. Your dad and I are right here, and Lars is right around the corner." She leaned forward and started crying into the front of his t-shirt. He put his arms around her and said, "It's okay. Hold on to me." He looked up and caught Prince Philip's eye. He blushed slightly and smiled. Prince Philip smiled back, then turned to talk to Lars.

Five minutes later, they were on the move again. Every time they heard a guard, they'd duck behind the bushes or the trees. They finally got past the castle gates where Lars had a private jet waiting. They hurried towards it. Just as Prince Philip climbed on, they were surrounded by lights.

"Stop where you are." A guard commanded from close range. Lars had two guns, so he grabbed one and threw the other at Michael.

"Princess, get in the jet." He mumbled. Mia edged her way towards the jet and her father grabbed her and pulled her the rest of the way in. Lars kept his gun drawn, and so did Michael. They glared at the guardsmen until they saw the circle of guardsmen part. Grandmere appeared from behind them.

"Oh it's you." She hissed, glaring at Michael. "I thought I'd see you again, unfortunately, this will be the last time." She motioned towards a guard and he rushed forwards to grab at Michael. Michael pulled the trigger on the gun. The guard stopped and looked around. Michael had shot at a tree.

"That was fully intentional!" He yelled with a grin, then shoved Lars into the jet, jumped in and slammed the door behind him. "Drive!" He yelled at the pilot. Then realized what he said. "Er—um—FLY!" He jumped into a seat next to Mia and buckled his belt.

MEANWHILE

On the ground back in Genovia, the guards were all gathered around a figure crumpled on the ground. "My heart—"Iit was moaning. "My heart—" The head guard pushed his way into the center of the circle and knelt next to the body. "The Queen is dead." He said loud enough for everyone to hear.

BACK IN THE SKY

Two hours into the flight, Michael lifted the arm rest between he and Mia's chairs. He eased Mia over so that she was lying on him. Lars was on his laptop, making arrangements for Prince Philip for when they arrived in New York. Prince Philip was looking around. He stared at Mia lying on Michael's chest with him staring at her like she was the most beautiful thing in the world. He jabbed Lars in the ribs, then nodded over towards Michael. Lars nodded and shrugged.

"What's going on?" Prince Philip asked him. "Who is he?" Lars looked at him and smiled.

"Her best friend's brother. He's from New York and she's known him since she was little. They started dating three years ago, but then broke up. They were living together when your mother went and—and brought Mia to Genovia. As far as I can tell—they're back together." He said with a grin. "Actually, Michael came to Genovia last summer, while you were in Austria sir, and he also came three summers ago."

"Wait, that's Michael? Michael Moscowhozits?" Prince Philip looked baffled. "God, I never would have recognized him. He's a nice boy. We watched rugby together." He said, laughing. When he laughed, Michael opened his eyes and looked over at him. He lifted the hand that wasn't holding onto Mia and saluted Prince Philip. Prince Philip in turn smiled and nodded, then turned back to Lars and said, "I like him."


	15. We Have Arrived

(((A/N-- Sorry this is so short, but I just need a little linkage to the next chapter. I really hope you guys are enjoying this. If you have any suggestions on how I could make the story a little cooler, or something like that, just let me know. By the way, thanks to _**jenjen-jenfur **_for the Penguin idea. That REALLY helped me out. Thank you so much! :-D Well, I know you want me to shut up now, so...on with the show (story actually...)))

* * *

The jet landed right outside New York. Michael blinked his eyes open and shook Mia.

"Hey." He whispered as she stretched and yawned.

"Hey. Are we in New York?" She asked, sitting up and pulling on her shoes.

"Yeah." Michael said, grabbing his own shoes and pulling them on. He reached behind his chair and pulled his jacket out. He threw it around Mia and stood up.

"Michael, you need this—you're only wearing a t-shirt.." Mia said, starting to take the jacket off.

"No, I'm fine. Keep it." He said then grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the seat. Prince Philip and Lars were in the front of the plane with the pilot, so Michael and Mia walked up to the cockpit to see what was going on. Prince Philip was sitting in a seat close to the pilot and Lars was trying to calm him down.

"Sir, your own mother _sold you out._ She tried to give you over to the enemy. She made you miserable your whole life."

"But she's still my mother, Lars. She brought me up when my father died."

"No she didn't. Your governess brought you up. For God's sake Philip, she didn't even eat with you!" Michael was taken aback; the only people Michael had ever heard refer to the Prince by his first name were Mia's mother and her grandmother.

"What's going on?" Mia asked, kneeling by her father's feet and holding his hand. The Prince just looked away, so Lars responded to Mia's question.

"Princess, almost immediately after we took off, your Grandmother had a heart attack and died." Mia looked shocked, but didn't burst into tears or have any look of sadness on her face.

"Dad? I-I know it's wrong, but it's better this way. She was keeping us from what we deserved. You can marry Henrietta now, you've been wanting to for 3 years. You guys love each other." She whispered as she rubbed her dad's hand. The memory of his girlfriend brightened him up a little. She looked over at Michael and smiled. "And—and Michael and I—"

"We can go on with our lives—get engaged even." Michael said quietly. Mia started to nod, but then realized what Michael had said and her eyes lit up. Michael could tell she wanted to jump up and start yelling, but she just bit her bottom lip and stayed with her father. Lars pulled Michael aside.

"Michael, I have a problem. My contacts back in Genovia are trying to get rid of the rest of the guardsmen left when Clarisse—died. I need somewhere to hide the Philip and Mia. I don't know New York very well and I can't get in touch with my contacts. It'll only be a few hours. Do you have any idea?" Lars was nervous, Michael could tell, he was handling his gun. Lars saw him looking at it and grinned. "It's empty. I used the last shot earlier." Michael smiled, but thought about where Mia could be hidden.

"The Penguin House at the Zoo." Michael said, the memory of Mia explaining her reaction when she'd first heard she was a princess rushing back. After she'd been told, she'd lost it and hidden in the Penguin House at the zoo. Lars nodded and went to get the Prince. Michael grabbed Mia and they headed out of the plane by cover of darkness.


	16. Chilling With the Penguins

Lars' contacts had the gates to the zoo open for them when they arrived. They also had a thermos of hot coffee and blankets. Lars followed Michael back into the Penguin House, where there was a corner that nobody ever went into and was dark and deserted. They threw their blankets into the corner and crawled under them. They had to be very quiet because the janitors were still here cleaning up, and they couldn't risk being seen. Mia was pressed between the wall and Michael. She had Michael's arm around her and her hands were wrapped around a steaming cup of coffee. Soon, all four of them had fallen asleep. Lars woke up a few hours later. His neck throbbed and his back ached. He checked his watch, then grabbed his gun and cell phone and went right outside the door leading to the Penguin House. He called one of his contacts. They told him that Genovia was now rid of any guards that had taken over in Grandmere's presence. They went peacefully since Mia's grandmother had died. The contact wanted to know when Lars would bring back Prince Philip so he could be made king.

"Actually, we've had a change of plan." Lars whispered so he wouldn't wake up the rest. "Prince Philip doesn't feel he's capable of ruling a country, and if he takes the throne that means one day his daughter will have to take over. He doesn't want her to, because he's realized that she has a life other than what Genovia holds for her. And that life is more important than ruling a small country. Here's our plan—"

Michael shifted slightly and moaned in his sleep. Mia scooted over and put her arm around his waist. Her eyes blinked open and she smiled. Who would have thought that she'd be sitting in the Penguin House, cuddling with Michael? She looked up and noticed her Father starting to wake up, so she snatched her hand off of Michael and sat up. She pulled the blankets down and slowly stood up. Michael opened his eyes and reached up to her.

"Where—Where you going?" He mumbled quietly.

"I'm going to go find Lars. Go back to sleep." Mia said as he lay down. She kneeled by him and pushed a few pieces of hair out of his face. "I love you." She whispered then leaned down and kissed his cheek.

"Love you—"Michael muttered.

Mia stood and walked to the cracked open door. Lars stood outside, drinking a mug of coffee and leaning on the wall.

"Good Morning Princess." He said, offering her a cup. She accepted and warmed up the minute the hot coffee hit her insides.

"Thank you Lars." She turned and glanced back over her shoulder at Michael and her father.

"Neither of them have had any sleep in days." Lars whispered to her.

"I know. I feel horrible. I never knew I'd be getting Michael into this." Mia explained.

"Princess, nobody knew that this was going to happen. Listen, your father and I were up last night on the plane, talking about what we were going to do when we returned to Genovia. We've decided that we're not going to make you rule." Lars went on to explain that they were going to try to turn Genovia into a democracy, with Presidents and all. "Your father will probably be the first president, but you still won't have to rule. And you'll still be a princess, but you won't—live in Genovia, and you can do whatever you'd like to with your—um—life." He laughed quietly when he noticed her grin and look towards Michael. She smiled up at him and they talked more about Lars and her father's plan. In the other room, Michael sat up and looked around.

"Mia?" He stood up and walked towards the doors leading from the room. Mia was sitting with Lars drinking some coffee and talking.

"Hey." She said, giving him her cup of coffee. He took a sip then handed it back to her.

"Hey, you're up early."

"Mmmhmm." She said. "I couldn't sleep."

The Prince woke up then, so Lars and the group shuffled back into the Penguin House and sat on a bench. It was cold, so Michael grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around Mia. He put his arms around her and she leaned back onto him. Lars filled in Michael and the Prince on the recent plans, then added some details had hadn't told Mia.

"Mia—you are going to stay in New York. Don't mention anything to the press, to your friends, to anyone. You may tell Lilly, because she was involved, but that's IT. You will go back to your normal life, go to school, hang out on the weekends, um—party, ect. Michael, you of course are going to stay here with Mia. Prince Philip and I are going back to Genovia almost immediately. We'll keep in contact, Mia." They sat around for awhile, discussing Genovia's future, and then it was time for the Prince and Lars to catch their plane.

"Goodbye Mia." Her father kissed her cheek and gave her a hug. "I'll call you in a few days." Prince Philip said before walking over to Michael. Lars went up to Mia and told her goodbye. While they were talking, Michael pulled Prince Philip over to the side.

"Sir, I know this probably isn't a good time, but I'd rather ask you in person, I don't know when the chance may come again where I can speak to you. I love your daughter, Sir. And I was wondering whether it would be okay if I asked her to—"Michael asked as he ran his hands through his hair.

"That would be fine. But hold off awhile, we have a lot of stuff going on and you two have your whole lives in front of you. Wait for awhile, but my answer will still be yes, whenever you decide to marry. You're a fine boy Michael. Thank you for taking care of my girl." Prince Philip said, and then shook Michael's hand. "Goodbye son."

"Goodbye Sir." Michael said as Prince Philip and Lars boarded the plane. He walked over to Mia and put his arm around her. They saw Prince Philip waving through one of the windows, so they waved back until the plane disappeared through the clouds.


	17. Seven and a Half Months

Michael caught a cab to take them back to their apartment. It was a long drive, and eventually Mia fell asleep. Michael didn't want to wake her up when they arrived, so he paid the driver and carried her upstairs. He unlocked the door and kicked it open. He took Mia into her room and put her down on the bed. Mia's pajamas where hanging in the bathroom, so he grabbed those and changed Mia's clothes.

"Michael?" She mumbled as he layed her down on the bed and pulled the covers up to her waist. "Are we at home?"

"Yeah, and it's time for you to go to sleep." Michael whispered, then kissed her softly on the lips and started to leave.

"Don't!" Mia shouted, bolting up in the bed. "I-I'm scared." Even though it was dark, Michael could feel Mia blush. "Stay—please, Michael."

"Alright, I'll be right back." He whispered, and then went into his room to change into his boxers. He shuffled back into Mia's room and climbed into her bed. She scooted towards him. He put his arm around her waist and curled around her back. "Night Mia." He whispered into her ear.

"G'Night Michael." She replied before she fell asleep.

The sun blinded Michael as he tried to open his eyes. It poured in through the window in Mia's bedroom. He reached his hand over to the bedside table and felt around for his watch; 10:30. He pushed the covers off his waist and swung his legs over the side of the bed. After he showered and shaved, he walked into the kitchen.

"Good Morning." Mia stood in the kitchen wearing her favorite jeans and a red Mickey Mouse t-shirt. She was stirring up a batch of pancakes, and Michael grinned when he saw a big bag of M&Ms next to the bowl. He walked around the bar and wrapped his arms around Mia's waist.

"Morning Babe. Pancakes?"

"Yep. M&Ms?"

"Of course! Kiss?" Mia laughed and pecked him on the cheek. While Mia poured the batter into a pan, Michael pulled plates out of the cabinet. Within the next five minutes coffee mugs, silverware, napkins, and a carton of milk were set out on the table. Michael and Mia ate their breakfast in silence, as they always did. Neither one wanted to disturb the other while they were eating their M&M pancakes. Everyone else thought they were disgusting, but Michael and Mia loved them. When they were finished, they cleaned up and flopped down on the couch. When they'd finally settled down and were watching Trading Spaces, the phone rang. Michael grabbed for it.

"Hey. Moscovitz-Thermopolis residence."

"Michael! You're home! Is Mia with you?! Omigod I was so worried! Are you okay? Is Mia okay? Omig—"Lilly screeched into the phone.

"Whoa—Lilly—Breathe for a minute will you? I'm fine, Mia's fine, we're obviously home, why don't you come over and we'll tell you all about it." He said, and then handed the phone to Mia.

"Lilly?" Mia said into the phone.

"MIA!" Michael heard blast from the other end. Mia jerked the phone away from her ear and mouthed 'Ow', then went back to talking to Lilly.

"—No I'm fine. Of course I'm not—But Lilly—No—Yes—Maybe?—LILLY!" She started laughing uncontrollably. Michael assumed his sister had mentioned something embarrassing about him and Mia being together. "Okay, we'll see you in a little—Okay Lilly—Okay, bye." Mia grinned as she reached over Michael to put the phone on the cradle. She put her head down in his lap and looked up at him.

"She's engaged." Mia grinned as she saw the dumbfounded look on Michael's face.

"She WHAT?! To—oh, Jeremiah?"

Mia nodded. "Yep. She said he came home let's see, the night I was taken, and then he asked her the following morning. It's weird isn't it? They've only been together for three and a half months."

"But she knew him for something like four months before we met him, so—"

"Seven and a half months." Mia said almost instantly.

"I have to say your math has gotten a lot better since 9th grade." Michael laughed and gently pushed Mia over so he could lie down next to her. He put his arms around her and they kissed and cuddled until Lilly got there.


	18. Ring around the Popcorn

(((A/N-- Good Lord! You people are so impatient! Just kidding...I get that way too when I read ya'lls stories. Well...here we go! Oh, by the way...I'm going to try to finish this story up in the next chapter, so....on with the show (This chapter's short, so sorry!)

By the way again, Jeremiah is living with Lilly. Ok, I'm done now. Bye!)))

* * *

Lilly pounded on the front door. Michael groaned and rolled over Mia to answer it.

"Hey Lil—oof!" Michael got the breath knocked out of him when Lilly threw her arms around him and started squealing.

"I was so worried! I thought you were dead! I didn't know what to do! MIA!" She yelled as she saw Mia standing by the sofa. She ran over and jumped on Mia so hard that she knocked Mia over. "Oh my god! Are you okay? I was so scared! I'm sorry I didn't fight for you!"

Lilly went on, alternating between screaming, yelling, squealing, crying, and laughing, for an hour and a half. Finally she calmed down after Michael got her a Coke.

"So..." Mia said moving her finger around the rim of her coffee mug. "What's going on with Jeremiah?" Lilly blushed.

"He's fine. He's a little stiff, but he's up and moving around. He's practically back to normal. I'm really glad he's back, I—I missed him." Lilly smiled into her glass and took a drink.

"And..." Michael urged her. He sat in the corner of the couch with his arm around Mia. He ran his fingers over her shoulders, and every so often he felt her shudder.

"We're engaged." Lilly whispered. Mia smiled and threw her free arm around Lilly. They hugged and giggled, then Lilly hugged Michael and sat down.

"Oh I'm so excited Lilly! You're getting married!" Mia giggled. They discussed wedding plans until late that night, when Lilly decided to leave. Michael had been taking a shower when he came out to find Lilly gone.

"Lilly left already huh?" He asked sitting on the couch and wrapping his arms around Mia.

"Yeah." She responded absently.

"Something on your mind?" Michael asked softly nibbling on her ear.

"Yes—No—I don't know." She sighed and leaned onto him. "Michael I'm so confused."

"About what babe?" Michael stroked her back to calm her down. She shivered, so Michael pulled a blanket off the back of the sofa and wrapped it around them.

"Lilly asked me to be her maid of honor." Mia snuggled up to Michael.

"That's not going to work." Michael said, reaching over the back of the sofa and grabbed a bowl of popcorn.

"Why not?" Mia asked defensivly. Michael offered her the popcorn and she took a hand full. Something cold and hard slid through her fingers and fell into her lap. She picked it up and her eyes widened. She threw the popcorn up into the air and jumped around to face Michael.

"Are you—You've gotta be—OMIGOD!" She squealed. Michael took the ring from her and plucked a piece of popcorn out of her hair.

"Mia? Marry me?" Mia laughed and tears filled her eyes as she nodded yes. Michael slid the ring onto her finger. Mia threw her arms around his neck and held onto him for the longest time. Michael kissed her forehead and whispered.

"I love you Mia."


	19. That Sums it Up!

Well, as it turns out, Michael had spoken to Jeremiah while he was in the hospital. They'd originally planned to propose on the same night, so they set the date and waited. Unfortunately, the night that Mia was taken was the night that Michael had wanted to propose. Jeremiah didn't know that Mia had been taken, so he proposed to Lilly before Michael had the chance to ask Mia. Although their plans didn't work out, they arranged to have a double wedding.

It was a beautiful affair. A red carpet led the way to the alter, silk ribbon and roses arched over the aisles, flowers were placed everywhere, light filtered in the stained glass windows, and the whole church was filled with music. Lilly was escorted down the aisle by her father. Her gown was strapless and white and flowers were scattered in her dark hair. Mia followed shortly after wearing a white dress with a chiffon skirt and cap sleeves. Her hair was swept back in a loose bun and tendrils of hair fell into her face. She carried a bouquet of yellow roses. Michael grinned as he watched her glide up the aisle on her father's arm. Her father turned back her veil and kissed her cheek. As Michael took her hands in his, he noticed they were shaking slightly.

"Are you nervous?" He whispered, giving her hands a quick squeeze. After seeing his smiling face, Mia calmed down a bit.

"A little." She whispered back.

"Don't be, Babe, as long as you're with me, I won't let anything go wrong."

The priest started the service then and everything ran smoothly.

"You may kiss your brides—er—bride." The priest said and the congregation laughed. Lilly squealed as Jeremiah grabbed her a planted a kiss on her lips with a loud 'SMACK'. Michael on the other hand kissed Mia softly and hardly anybody noticed when his hand slid up to her lower back and pressed her in the side. Till this day, everybody wonders why Mia broke out into the giggles when Michael kissed her. Jeremiah and Michael grabbed the girls and they all ran down the aisle together and piled into the same limo. Jeremiah immediately grabbed Lilly and kissed her the minute the door was shut. Michael gave Mia one of his famous grins before he helped her take off her veil. After Michael had thrown the veil off to the side he pulled Mia onto his lap and they kissed and cuddled until they pulled up to the hotel where the reception was being held.

The minute the couples walked in, everybody started to scream. Rice was thrown, and camera flashes went off. They went over to the head table and sat down. Toasts were made and music was played and finally Lilly and Jeremiah danced for the first dance. Michael and Mia got up afterwards and Michael's band (minus Michael) played "Princess of my Heart" for their first dance. This was a surprise to Mia, and she started crying on Michael's shoulder. The reception went on for three hours, and finally after Lilly and Mia changed clothes, Lilly and Jeremiah left to catch their plane to Ireland and Michael and Mia caught theirs to Greece.

On the plane, Michael held Mia's hand and they talked quietly since all the other travelers were asleep. It was late—12:30 in the morning actually. They had one hour left until they landed in Athens and made their way to Santorini.

"You looked amazing." Michael whispered as he kissed her near her ear. She blushed.

"So did you." She replied, and leaned on his shoulder. "God, I'm tired." She muttered. Michael kissed her hair and chuckled quietly.

"And this isn't exactly what I had in mind for a wedding night." He wrapped his arm around her waist and gave her a quick squeeze.

"Be patient. You have two weeks worth of wedding nights to look forward to." She giggled and Michael groaned.

"Mia—" They were quiet for awhile. Mia finally fell asleep, and so did Michael—eventually. They only stayed asleep for half an hour before Mia jerked awake, remembering something.

"M—Michael?" She whispered, nudging him slightly.

"What's wrong?" He asked wearily.

"I forgot to tell you. I'm pregnant."

_**FOLLOW-UP**_

The Genovian royal family (Prince Phillippe and Mia) decided that they would make Genovia a democracy, since Mia had no desire to be a princess and they felt it would be better for Genovia. They passed it by the Parliament and within two months of Mia's wedding, her father was the first President of Genovia.

Michael and Mia kept two homes—one in New York and one in Genovia. They chose not to live in the castle, but in the old barn on the grounds. They converted it into a beautiful home. They ended up having four kids, Lillian (Lilly), Christopher, and the twins, Chloe and Nicole.

Lilly and Jeremiah decided not to have kids of their own, but adopted twins from Ireland, Sean and Matthew (the same age as Chloe and Nicole). They stayed in New York.

Tina and Boris moved around a lot, but ended up staying in California, near Mia's parents. They had five kids, Amanda, Timothy, Justin, Jacob, and Constance (Connie).

Mia never had to rule a country and her father ended up marrying Henrietta. Lilly became a news broadcaster, and Jeremiah started his own Comedy Club. Michael kept on writing music for his band, even after he left it. Everything turned out in the end, thank goodness.

(((A/N It's OVER!! Everybody say YAY! Not that I hated writing it, but I had the WORST time trying to sum up the whole kit-n'-caboodle. It's hard to finish a story! I hope I remembered everything, and I really hope you enjoyed this. School starts back in 2 days, so I don't know if I'm going to be able to write another story, no matter how much I want to. I'm a dancer and that takes a LOT of time, what with homework and all. Thanks for reading, and I really hope you liked this story. Adio!)))


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